


I Will Give You Forever

by candysams



Category: Banana Fish (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Night Talks, Nightmares, ash and eiji love each other and that's canon, eiji says forever, post ep 10, references to shorter's death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-09-23 19:50:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17086631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/candysams/pseuds/candysams
Summary: Ash has a nightmare after they've returned from Golzine's mansion, but Eiji is there to pick up the pieces.





	I Will Give You Forever

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this as a drabble a long time ago and totally forgot about it until I rediscovered it a couple of days ago! After watching the finale, I figured I'd revisit and finish it bc we all need some nice asheiji in our lives. Enjoy :)

“ _Shorter_ ,”

Eiji jolted awake at the sound, tired eyes blown wide as he searched for the source of the cry. He had been on edge ever since he woke up in Golzine’s possession, unsure of what had happened to Ash and Shorter and terrified of what could happen to him. It was a miracle he was able to fall asleep in the first place, given the new strange environment and the hushed whispers from behind the door. But Ash had assured him he was safe, and Eiji trusted Ash wholeheartedly.

He turned towards the other bed, searching for Ash and praying to the gods that he was safe. Ash tossed and turned to face him, his eyes squeezed shut and his lips parted, panting in his sleep.

A bad dream, Eiji thought.

“Shorter!” Ash woke up to his own desperate plea, green eyes flying open with a haunted gasp. Eiji jerked back in surprise, just barely out of Ash’s immediate line of sight. Even though there was a small distance between them, Eiji could still see Ash’s face glistening with sweat and—Eiji looked closer— _tears_.

A  _nightmare_.

Eiji didn’t know if his interference would help so he sat back, hesitantly watching Ash recover on his own. Ash sat up slowly, using one hand to roughly pull his hair out of his face, where it was starting to stick from the sweat. His breathing was still heavy from the nightmare and raspy from whatever injuries he had endured during their liberation, his other hand tugging on the front of his shirt as if it could give him more room to breathe.

Ash broke the tension between them a moment later, when his breathing was close to normal and his hands had stopped shaking where they held him together at the seams.

“Sorry if I woke you.” He mumbled, refusing to turn and meet Eiji’s gaze.

“It’s okay.”

“You should go back to sleep.” Ash curtly said, although he didn’t look like he was going to follow his own advice when he freed his legs from the blanket and set them aside.

Eiji chose to ignore his advice as well, getting up and blindly stumbling across the floor until he reached the dresser. His hands closed around a half-full water bottle and a fistful of napkins from the takeout they had shared before bed. He returned to Ash’s side with the items in hand, kneeling on the bed next to him.

Ash closed his eyes, still tense from his nightmare even as Eiji drew closer. He flinched at the first touch of damp paper to sweaty skin, his hand shooting out to grab Eiji’s wrist and stop him.

He immediately relaxed when he opened his eyes and saw Eiji, who had frozen to give Ash enough time to process and react. “Sorry.” Ash mumbled, releasing his grip on Eiji and allowing him to resume his work. He should have known it was just Eiji, he had requested the room alone with just Eiji. The rest of his gang sat outside, on high alert now that their boss was back.

“I’m sorry too.” Eiji whispered, gently wiping the sweat off Ash’s forehead and then drying it with a clean napkin. He was careful not to aggravate any untreated injuries Ash still had, especially the cut on his neck. Ash leaned into the touch, his eyes fluttering shut as he tried not to give in to the urge to fall sleep where he sat.

“I just—“ Ash cut himself off with a sigh, nudging Eiji’s right hand away from his face so that he could grasp it in both of his own and hold it close to his chest. Eiji could feel the beat of his heart, still elevated from the adrenaline that came with night terrors.

“I know.” Eiji assured him, squeezing Ash’s hand in his. He could see Ash’s pain etched onto his face; he didn’t need words to understand it. This pain was something they shared.

Ash nodded quickly, raising Eiji’s hand to his lips and pressing a kiss to his fingers. Tears started pouring down his face, ruining Eiji’s efforts but freeing both of their hearts.

“I love you, Eiji.” Ash cried. “I can’t lose you too. You should go back to Japan—far, far away from me!” He dropped Eiji’s hand, letting it fall limply between them, pressing the palms of his hands into his eyes as if it could stop the tears from escaping.

“I don’t want to go back to Japan yet, I want to stay with  _you._ ” Eiji insisted. He pulled Ash’s hands away from his face and interlaced their fingers, locking their hands together and ensuring Ash could not hide his emotions. Ash’s teary gaze started down at their joined hands before slowly traveling up until he reached Eiji’s eyes. Whatever he saw seemed to grab his attention, his eyes locked on Eiji’s despite his trembling. “Shorter trusted you with his life, Ash. He knew you would do the right thing.”

“But he’s _dead_ because of me!”

“You saved him, Ash!” Eiji insisted. This was the first time they had talked about it, the only time they had been alone long enough to even broach the subject. Ash had spent the day wrapped in his bravado, putting on a façade for the boys who hung on to his every word. This was the first time Ash had been willing to let his guard down just an inch, just enough for Eiji to slip past his wall.

Or maybe Eiji had flown over it, launching off a makeshift pole like the first time he met Ash.

“You saved me too, Ash.” Eiji’s voice softened. Ash melted like butter at the words, slumping forward into Eiji’s warmth.

“Stay with me, Eiji.” Ash whispered, cheek pressed against the warm fabric of Eiji’s shirt, right over his heart. Eiji wrapped his arms around Ash’s shoulders, as if he could form a human shield to protect Ash from the cruel world that had always been against him. “Just for tonight.”

“I will stay with you forever,” Eiji murmured, closing his eyes and lowering them both down on top of the blanket. Ash’s breathing was slow and deep, nearing sleep, but his grip on Eiji’s shirt tightened at his words.

“ _If only you’d ask_.”

**Author's Note:**

> Ash and Eiji deserve each other and I will never get over the anime ending :'(
> 
> Come talk to me about anything BF on [tumblr](https://candysams.tumblr.com/) or [twitter](https://twitter.com/candysamstwit)!


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